Chapter 39
“brODYAGA FUNK” ETERNXLKZ
R ed fills my vision. I’m close to blacking out, and it’s taking everything in me to hold on so I’m aware of every second as I kill this motherfucker.
All I can hear is the sound of Madison’s screams. She called me, and I listened to her conversation turn into an assault.
While I drove like a bat out of hell in the rain, I listened to her fight, then scream as Justin touched her while Jerry watched. I didn’t think I would make it in time.
She needed me, and I almost didn’t make it to her.
She screamed for me, just as I told her to do all those years ago.
And had I not arrived when I did, she would have been raped by not only Justin, but also by her own fucking father.
Justin squirms and rolls his body to get out of my tight grip as I drag him toward the front door.
I stop and turn my head to look at the staircase.
Justin cusses behind me and grapples with my wrists in a lame attempt to make me release him.
Ignoring him, I haul him up the stairs and turn him in my arms, forcing him to look at me.
Because I have my tinted visor down, he can’t see the rage burning in my eyes.
For now, he’ll have to look at his own reflection and see the monster that he is.
I’m a man of my word. I promised him I’d shove him down a flight of stairs before making him bite the curb, and that’s exactly what I’m about to do.
Justin glowers at me and fists the front of my hoodie at my chest. “You won’t get away with this.”
I grab his fingers and bend them back, one by one.
The pussy flinches and stumbles backward, stopping right before he trips over the first step.
My lips curve into a slight smile, and I shove him.
His eyes widen, jaw slackening on a yell as he falls backward and tumbles all the way down with loud thumps.
My grin widens with every scream he lets out.
He lands in a heap at the bottom, with keening noises coming out of him I never thought he’d make.
He’s pathetic. A worthless piece of trash who doesn’t deserve to breathe anymore.
“You . . . you hurt me!” he wheezes.
I roll my eyes.
That’s the intention, dumbass.
He struggles to roll onto his side as I descend the stairs and take in his injuries. Blood coats his forehead and drips into his eyes. He squeezes them shut and holds his stomach, his features twisting in pain as he cries like the little bitch he is.
“Not so tough now, are you?” I grab a fistful of his hair, then drag him to the front door. His garbled threats and sobs weaken until they’re nothing more than whimpers.
I hope the fucker doesn’t die yet, because I have something way worse planned for him.
I drag Justin into the downpour, barely feeling the bite of cold rain. Rage turned my blood into fire, mixing with a familiar numbness as Madison’s screams echo in my head. I clench my teeth and yank Justin harder to get him across the lawn faster.
Justin kicks his legs, thinking it’s enough to slow me down as I pull him through the front yard and onto the street. I let go of his hair and shove his head closer to the curb.
“Here’s what you’re going to do.” I point at the curb and crouch beside him. “You’re gonna bite that or I’ll drag you behind my motorcycle until all your skin peels off.”
Justin’s eyes widen. “You’re not serious, are you?”
I stand and place the bottom of my boot against the back of his head. Justin lays his palms flat on the ground and jerks his neck to keep his face away from the curb.
“Bite it,” I snarl.
Fear flares in Justin’s eyes, and he arches his back and shoves the ground to get up.
I kick him between the shoulders and hold all my weight on him to keep him down, flipping up the helmet’s visor so I can hear him whimpering over the rain and thunder.
Crouching down, I keep my boot between his shoulder blades and put my head close to his face.
“If you don’t bite the curb, I’ll spend all night torturing you in ways you can’t even imagine,” I say.
Justin meets my gaze and stares for what feels like forever. Tears swim in his eyes and trail down his cheeks, mixing with the raindrops. Finally, he opens his mouth and sets his teeth on the curb.
“Such a good boy.” I run a gloved finger over his cheek, then flick his forehead. I straighten and move my boot off of him so I can stand by his head. “Now look at me.”
He raises his eyes and ugly cries as he keeps his teeth in place.
“There we go.” I pull out my cell phone and snap a few pictures of him. “Now rot in hell, motherfucker.”
Fear flashes across Justin’s face as I raise my leg.
His fingers curl into the cement, his shoulders tensing as he braces himself for the impact.
I stomp my boot on the back of his head and grin at the satisfying crunch.
His teeth smash into the curb, and he lets out a wail.
I raise my leg and stomp again, crushing his skull into the pavement.
Blood splashes against the curb and mixes with the rain.
Lightning flashes nearby, followed by a loud boom, covering Justin’s weakening gurgles. I stomp on the back of his head again and take a step back as his body shakes. His leg kicks out—a normal response as his dying brain sends trauma signals to the rest of his body.
I wish I could bring him back to life, just to do this all over again and make him suffer even more. It’s too fucking bad it’s not possible.
C’est la vie.
My chest heaves, and sweat coats my skin, cooling me down. I spit on Justin’s corpse and snap a few more pictures of him before I tap on Jaxon’s name in my contacts. The phone rings three times before he answers.
“Yeah?” he says, his voice thick with sleep.
“Need help with cleanup.”
“Where you at?”
“At my house.”
“Jesus.” There’s shifting of what sounds like sheets, then heavy footsteps on his side of the call. “I’ll be there in five minutes.”
“I’ll let Hawk and Aiden know,” I say. “Bring something that will clean off blood from asphalt and marble floors.”
Jaxon is silent for a moment before he asks, “So, you need a power washer and chemicals?”
“Might be safe.” I nudge Justin’s body with the tip of my boot and cock my head as I assess him. My mind flies through all the things we’ll need to remove the evidence so we don’t have the cops or the Exiled on my ass.
“Got it. I’ll be there in a minute.” Jaxon hangs up.
I call Aiden, then Hawk, letting them know I’ll need their help. Per usual, Aiden isn’t happy about getting rid of another body, but I know he’ll do it anyway.
After I end the call, I leave Justin’s dead body and stalk toward the house. I need to go to Madison. Not only because she needs me, but because I need to make sure she’s okay.
My steps slow as I approach the porch. Madison stands outside, under the shelter of the porch roof. She put her underwear back on, but a trail of blood runs down the inside of her thigh.
I remove my helmet and shake my head to set my damp hair back into place.
The helmet drops from my hands, and I leave it forgotten on the ground as I stop in front of her.
I want to cup her cheeks, look her over and make sure she’s okay, but I don’t want to scare her any more than she already is right now.
Tears shine in her eyes, giving them a glossy look. Her chest rises and falls with quick, panicked breaths.
Let me touch you, little sister. Let me hold you. I bite my tongue to keep myself from begging her.
We stay quiet for a moment, staring at each other as I wait for her to run from me. I don’t want her scared of me, but she just witnessed me murdering two men.
A whimper spills past her lips, and she throws herself at me. I wind my arms around her, catching her before she falls. My eyes slide shut, and I squeeze her closer to me, needing her to be one with me, to burrow beneath my skin and never part from me again.
“You’re here,” she chokes out.
I bury my face in her hair at the top of her head. “Always, baby doll. I’ll always be here and keep you safe.”
Madison cries into my chest, her fingers curling into my drenched hoodie. My temples ache from the pressure of holding back tears.
I thought she would have been safe with Nova.
I wasn’t planning on all of this going to shit, but I should have known better.
Jerry and Justin warned me repeatedly, and I fucking ignored every single one of them.
It doesn’t matter right now. All that matters is her and needing her to know how fucking sorry I am.
Madison shakes her head. “It’s not your fault.”
It is my fault. I should have waited for my friends to call or text me back, or at the very least, I should have called them before blindly riding out of town.
Instead, I fell for Jerry and Justin’s trap.
They found my weakness in her and my friends and used it against me.
I should have listened to those assholes when they hinted at taking me down.
I’m a fucking idiot who doesn’t deserve to breathe anymore.
I take Madison’s hand and lead her through the house and into the kitchen instead of the living room.
I don’t want her to see her father’s corpse again.
Dropping onto a chair, I drag Madison onto my lap and hold her close.
She melts in my arms and buries her face in the crook of my neck as I cling to her like a lifeline.
I want to kiss her so badly. I want to chase the memory of Justin’s touch from her skin, but I don’t want to violate her any more than she already has been. Instead of giving in to my selfish needs, I hold her while she softly cries against my throat.
Her screams echo in my head, bringing the fright I felt while I listened to them on the dangerous ride here. With all the rain, I could have easily wrecked and died, but Madison is always worth the risk. She’s successfully wrapped me around her little finger, and I refuse to release my hold now.